Viernes - Sinister Devices (2010)

Submitted on Tue, 06/22/2010 - 10:51

Review from Pitchfork:

I used to think that the dreamiest, most escapist music tended to come from the places that needed it the most. But lately I've enjoyed how Washed Out (Georgia), Toro Y Moi (South Carolina), and Surfer Blood (Florida) have repped the South, proving that sounds like these are possible even when you've got good weather and reasonable rent. Viernes, hailing from the artsy Orlando exurb of Winter Park, are an even better test case. I imagine most people would classify them as dream pop, but what makes this album such a strikingly individual debut is how qualities like lucidity and compositional rigor cut against those parameters. Alberto Hernandez and Sean Moore, the duo behind Viernes (the band now tours as a trio), aren't afraid to drift and float, but they do so with complete control.

After the languid piano and synth snare opener of "Glass Windows", "Sinister Love" begins meekly, a couple of strangely harmonized "doot-doot"'s and thrumming bass giving no hint of the lift-off to come. But from there on out, the record is an unpredictable series of expansions and contractions. The title of "Sinister Love" is the only discernible lyric, but it's indicative of the unsettling melody swooping in between runs of piano too nimble for human hands. "Entire Empire" is cut from the same cloth, but is more in tune with the overwhelming bliss of shoegaze. While the intent of the vocals remains vague (the title is again repeated throughout; these guys aren't much for elaboration), the melancholy harmonies cut against the overwhelming optimism of the beauty of the music.

Though "Sinister Love" and "Entire Empire" are Sinister Devices' undeniable peaks, that might just be a matter of sequencing. Free-form instrumentals "Enhanced Pendulum Channel" and "Liquid Tunnel" have an oxidized beauty to them, but Side B of Devices tends to lean on that particular sound a bit too much. "Faulty Investments" is a relatively spare, melodically tart piano piece reminiscent of Field Music, and while the prominence of its vocals makes it something of an awkward fit, the tension it creates with its obscure surroundings makes it the back half's standout.

More often than not, Viernes find a balance between gossamer and grit. The textures of "Regressive Soul Pollution" are rich and considered as a guitar evokes both autoharp and gong, while "Honest Parade", a synth curlicue evoking older M83 emanating from stormy distortion, flexes similar muscles. These two tracks from the more abstract end of the spectrum, maybe even more than "Entire Empire" and "Sinister Love", are what make Devices so promising, hinting at what could develop when Viernes grow more comfortable with the idea of themselves as a band.